“When you have a common problem, you look for a common solution. That common solution happens through cooperation. That means multilateralism,” says Finnish President @alexstubb. Stubb joined CNN’s @FareedZakaria at CFR this week on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly for a conversation on European security, relations with the United States, AI cooperation, and UN reform.

Jessica Brandt, expert for technology and national security at CFR, breaks down President Donald Trump’s remarks before the 81st UN General Assembly, in which he called for artificial intelligence to be renamed “superintelligence.” “Definitions of superintelligence are a little bit contested, but broadly, we think of superintelligence, or AGI—artificial general intelligence—as an AI system that is on par with or exceeds human cognition across a wide range of tasks,” Brandt says. “But I don’t think that’s actually what the president was talking about here. I think this may have actually been as simple as a reframe around something that is ‘super.’”

“I think part of it is a setup for a possible negotiation. I’m skeptical of all of it. But I think they’re leaning towards negotiations,” says CFR Middle East expert @stevenacook, analyzing President Donald Trump’s threat to Iran during his remarks before the 81st United Nations General Assembly. Watch the full conversation with CFR experts here:

The General Assembly is the only universally representative body of the United Nations—a platform for all 193 UN member states to participate in global decision-making with equal representation. And every September, world leaders gather for a week of high-level meetings and rigorous debate over vexing global issues. This year's session is expected to focus on critical topics from climate change and AI governance to major conflicts in Iran, Ukraine, and elsewhere. Here's what to know about the General Assembly, one of the principal organs of the United Nations:

In a conversation with CFR President @MikeFroman, @TonyOElumelu, founder and chairman of @Heirs_Holdings and founder of @TonyElumeluFDN, discusses Africa’s evolving role in the global economy, including entrepreneurship as a catalyst for development, private sector-led growth, energy security, and the evolving U.S.-Africa partnership.

As Trump and Xi meet this week, my biography of his father Zhongxun has a new softcover edition and a new audiobook on places like Audible, Apple Books, Chirp, Kobo, and Libro fm. Has the backstory to these pictures of Zhongxun's trip to the US in 1980 (NORAD to Disneyland)

The United Nations’ ambitious development agenda aims to protect people and the planet. But experts say governments aren’t doing enough to implement them ahead of the 2030 deadline.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping meets President Donald Trump in Washington, DC, this week—and "U.S. access to critical materials is expected to again be the top issue," writes EU Institute for Security Studies expert @joristeer in a new CFR report. "Western governments have long treated their dependence on China-controlled critical raw materials, the backbone of the global economy, as a latent risk. Between 2023 and 2026, Beijing imposed export controls on gallium, rare earths, and at least seven other materials," he writes. Last year, "Beijing woke up to the enormous power it wields through its control over critical materials and other value chains. If the United States and Europe do not dismantle this weapon (and deter its use in the interim), China may press its advantage to achieve much greater aims in the coming years—most dangerously, a forced 'reunification' with Taiwan," he argues. Read the full report:

The September/October 2026 issue of @ForeignAffairs is now available. The latest issue provides analysis on the future of U.S. alliances, the threat of a global economic crisis from Chinese overcapacity, the dangers of synthetic pathogens created with AI, and more. Start reading:

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) asks @RushDoshi, director of @CFR_China, about leveraging federal procurement power to make the U.S. pharmaceutical supply chain less dependent on China. “The U.S. government has incredible purchasing power, but right now we effectively focus on low cost, not resilience, and not quality. And so as a result, purchasing groups are not incentivized to purchase, you know, with any knowledge of upstream KSM or API dependency.”

"By suing the board of Intel and the U.S. government, shareholders in the chipmaker have defied the Trump administration. They claim the government had no right to demand equity in exchange for grants made to Intel during the Biden administration under the Chips Act to boost the semiconductor industry," writes expert Laura Taylor-Kale. Supply chain resilience laws, like the Chips Act, "were intended to save companies producing materials or goods necessary for national defense, incentivize investment in critical technologies and boost production in strategic sectors," she writes. "The Trump administration has interpreted them as allowing the government to become a shareholder in companies — a potentially illegal shift." "Congress should clearly define when and how the government takes equity stakes and the guardrails necessary to support public investment for national defense," she argues.

What are UN peacekeeping missions? In this 6-minute video, Paul B. Stares, the General John W. Vessey senior fellow for conflict prevention and director of the Center for Preventive Action @CFR_org, presents these missions' operations and challenges.

The July/August 2026 issue of @ForeignAffairs is now available. The latest issue provides analysis on how new technologies threaten America's military advantage, what Russia's military power will look like after Ukraine, how a remade Iran will reshape the Middle East, and more. Start reading:

The rapid spread of a rare strain of Ebola in Central and East Africa now constitutes the third-largest Ebola outbreak on record. There have been more than 1,000 confirmed cases and hundreds of fatalities so far, with most cases concentrated in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Here's what to know about what's driving the current Ebola outbreak, the scale of the crisis, and what it means for the state of global health infrastructure and preparedness:

Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) asks @RushDoshi, director of @CFR_China, about what the potential consequences for the United States could be if China restricts just 25% of the inputs for amoxicillin. “The ability to have a shortage or an increase in price, I mean, that will ripple though the health-care system,” says Doshi. “At least 700 [U.S. drugs] have an upstream dependency on [key starting materials (KSMs)] that come from only China. So we’re talking about, potentially, a magnitude of impact that would be devastating to seniors.”

Conflict-driven disruptions of critical supply chain chokepoints have become a recurring feature of the world today, from Russia's 2022 blockade of Ukraine's grain exports via the Black Sea to Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz. A new CFR report lays out the playbook for how the U.S. government can respond to such crises.

“There’s probably not going to be a huge demand for folks with a major in gender studies or a soft science that is more philosophical than actually applicable. So I think you’re still going to have demand for folks that can build things,” says Alaska Governor @GovDunleavy, while discussing concerns that there will be fewer jobs for recent college graduates. “Plumbers and electricians will make more, in some cases, than doctors because of the demand on the data centers and so forth. But the question really is, is that short term or long term?” 🔗 Watch the full conversation:

In Women in Power: Fighting for Democracy in an Age of Authoritarianism, CFR expert @RobinsonL100 explores the effects of authoritarianism and violent extremism on women leaders, as well as the ways in which they are fighting back and creating more resilient democracies. Learn more:

You can't go to a meeting inside the Beltway without a discussion of regional integration. It's become a big deal, but it should be in the category of "nice to have, but not critical." 1/2